Undressing James Potter
by pink striped
Summary: Hogwarts is hit by a heat spell and as the temperature increases and James' clothes come off, Lily finds that her feelings for him are warming up as well.
1. Chapter 1: Breakfast

Please note: I do not own any of these characters. They are all the creation of the inspirational J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 1 - Breakfast**

Lily woke up earlier than usual that morning after a particularly restless sleep. As she slowly opened her eyes, she noticed that the grey light of dawn was only beginning to enter the room she shared with three other Gryffindor seventh years.

Groaning, Lily kicked off the heavy blankets that covered her bed and spread out her long limbs, hoping for some relief from their overwhelming warmth. Unfortunately none came and after waiting several minutes to cool down enough to fall back asleep, gave up and plodded to the bathroom for a long cold shower.

Feeling very refreshed and surprisingly awake Lily emerged from the bathroom and began put onher uniform. By the time she was dressed, Lily began to wish furtively that Hogwarts had a lighter uniform for days like this that promised to be blistering hot.

Grumbling to herself Lily made her way down the stairs to the Gryffindor common room where she paused for a minute to take in the view from one of the tower windows.

The lake glistened under the vibrant sunrise. The grass and trees were still the emerald green that was characteristic of them during the summer, even though it was already the middle of September. No clouds could be seen and Lily was forced to resign herself to the fact that there would be no break from the heat today.

When she arrived in the Great Hall, Lily found it occupied by only a few groggy students scattered along the long tables. Lily found a seat at the Gryffindor table and poured herself a glass of pumpkin juice that she gulped down immediately, savouring its smooth texture and low temperature.

As she dug into her breakfast, the Hall began to fill and Lily soon found herself surrounded by her closest friends, who like her, had been awoken by the heat.

"It's going to be unbearably hot today," Emmeline Vance grumbled.

"I hope not," Alice Prewett fretted, "Frank has Quidditch practice tonight and I wouldn't want him to get over heated."

"Alice, I'm sure that Frank can handle the heat," Amelia Bones assured her, "But I'd bet he'd think you're a dear for worrying."

The girls' conversation was interrupted by a loud yawn from the attractive, dark haired boy who had just sat down beside Lily.

Turning back to her friends Lily said, "Why don't you go get seats a bit farther up. I think it'll be cooler. I'll join you in a second."

Her friends did as she instructed and left her sitting alone with Sirius Black.

"Good morning, Lily of the Valley. I hope these sweltering temperatures do not wilt any of your beautiful petals."

"Oh lay off, Sirius," Lily said as she gave him a good natured shove and grinned. "And no matter how loudly you beg I will not be removing any of those petals so that you can get a better look at what's underneath."

Sirius put on his best bereaved expression which turned to one of confusion as he was cuffed on the side of the head.

"Prongs, mate, what was that for?" Sirius demanded as he turned around to stare at his handsome roommate.

James Potter shrugged his shoulders and replied tightly, "Stop annoying Evans."

Her green eyes flashing, Lily replied scornfully, "Potter, I can take care of myself, thank you very much. And for your information Sirius and I were just teasing each other. That's sometimes what friends do. I'm sure Sirius could explain it to you."

With that, she abruptly turned her back on the boys and walked over to join her friends.

Angrily, James demanded, "Since when have the two of you been friends?"

Looking somewhat sheepish in the face of his best friend's irritation, Sirius rubbed the back of his neck and replied without meeting James' eyes. "You remember the herbology project we had to do together at the end of fifth year? Well we sort of hit it off and we've been friends ever since. I got quite a few letters from her during the summer."

"Me too," Remus Lupin interjected as he sat down and grabbed a cinnamon roll from a nearby tray. "She had some pretty funny stories about her muggle sister Petunia and this thick oaf that's she dating named, ah, Vermin I think."

"No, his name is Vernon," Peter squeaked out as he arrived.

"You're friends with Lily too?" James said through gritted teeth.

"Well I guess. She helped me out a lot with potions."

"Great. So Lily likes every single one of the Marauders except me, the one who has been practically in love with her since 4th year," James moaned.

"Looks that way right now, mate. But cheer up. I'm sure she'll notice you one of these days," Sirius replied in effort to console his unhappy friend.

At the other end of Gryffindor table, Emmeline was observing to Lily, "That _was_ really strange, don't you think Lils?"

"What?" Lily asked in confusion. She had not been paying any attention to the conversation and had instead been staring at a certain tousle haired young man who looked thoroughly dejected.

"James Potter telling Sirius not to bug you, that's what. He's always been the one to initiate all the teasing, not to stop it."

"It is rather odd," Amelia agreed. "I wonder what's gotten into him."

"Maybe he's finally grown up," Alice offered fairly.

Lily snorted. "I doubt it. Although I suppose one can hope."

"Hope for what?" Sirius asked as he returned to sit down beside her once again.

"Hope for a break in the heat," Lily replied hastily, not wanting to give away the fact to anyone that she found the idea of a mature James Potter more than a little appealing.

"No can do," Sirius said grimly, "But I've got an excellent alternative. Skinny dipping!"

The girls all laughed and Amelia quickly stuck out her hand to keep Sirius from pulling off his shirt in an effort to get started on this new activity.

But Lily's mind was elsewhere, momentarily caught up wondering what the subject of their previous discussion would look like dripping wet.

* * *

Thank you all for reading!  
I'd like to thank my wonderful beta D0nQuix0te for editing this story and sharing with me her love of commas. You are the best!  
This is only chapter one so stay tuned for the rest.


	2. Chapter 2: Illusion

Please note: I do not own any of these characters. They are all the creation of the inspirational J.K. Rowling.

**Chapter 2 – Illusion**

The first class of the morning was charms where Professor Flitwick had decided to give them a small treat and teach them how to do an illusionary spell, in the hopes that the appeal of such an exciting new learning experience would keep the students from dozing off in the warm third floor classroom.

The idea of the spell was to create an illusion in the mind of the person upon whom it was cast. Although the charm could certainly be misused by those who wished to torment others, when used as intended it allowed people to view others' ideas or help someone escape from a particularly unhappy situation.

From atop a considerable stack of books, Professor Flitwick demonstrated the Illusion Spell on several people, all of whom took on a characteristic glazed expression while under the spell's influence.

The demonstration completed, the class broke off into pairs and spread themselves around the large room.

Lily stood opposite her partner Alice and attempted to do as Professor Flitwick had just instructed them. After several minutes of intense concentration on the image she wished to project, Lily muttered the incantation and swept her wand about in the complicated spiraling pattern.

For a moment Alice remained stock still, her eyes staring at an inconsequential point over Lily's shoulder. Realizing that she had just cast the spell correctly Lily's focus faltered as her elation swept in. Alice blinked twice and then her face broke into a bright smile.

"That was amazing! I felt like I really was standing in the snow. I even got hit by a snowball. I want to try now," Alice eagerly informed her.

"Go ahead," Lily said beaming.

Alice's face took on a look of intense concentration and then after a few minutes she asked excitedly, "Did I do it?"

Keeping her voice encouraging Lily replied, "I didn't really see anything distinct. Maybe just a few blurry shapes. Try again."

As Alice's face screwed up again in determination Lily's gaze began to wander around the room.

She noticed Sirius standing on her left hand side, talking animatedly with Remus, both of them grinning widely. Across the room she saw James standing by the window practicing the wand movement, his brow furrowed. Lily felt a sudden urge to go over and relax his features when suddenly the classroom disappeared from view.

_The corridor was dark, the only light coming from a few scattered torches flickering high overhead. Outside the window at the end of the hall, Lily could just make out the pin pricks of light that were stars._

_She heard footsteps behind her and turned to see James walking towards her, a small smile playing on his lips._

_Neither of them spoke as she and James came to stand little more than a foot away from each other, his clear brown eyes partially obscured in the shadows, making his expression impossible to read._

_Suddenly the distance between them disappeared and Lily felt herself being pushed roughly into the stone wall as James' lips descended to meet hers._

_He kissed her gently, exploring, seeing how she would react, and when she made no objection he deepened the kiss letting his feelings take over._

_Lily struggled for air and James removed his lips from hers, instead moving them to her neck where his jagged breathes began warming her soft skin. She arched her head back against the wall, elongating her neck to give him a large area to caress._

_No longer able to endure the seductive teasing Lily pulled James' head up and began to kiss him again, this time with her tongue skimming his lips, encouraging him to open them and allow her to explore the contours of his mouth._

_He obliged willingly and Lily wound her hands into his hair to bring him closer so that she could taste more of him, and feel more of him against her._

_His hands moved from the stone wall beside her to her waist and then slowly up her body, following the path of her curves._

_His touch enflamed her and Lily pulled away just long enough to unlatch his cloak, which drifted in a billowing wave to the floor, where it landed, the Head Boy badge shining upwards._

_James' hands travelled downwards again and she felt her shirt being tugged free of her waistband._

_No longer able to restrain herself Lily quickly tugged off James' vest and yanked off his tie. Moving her head to his throat Lily began kissing him fervently as she wrestled with his top button, and then the next and the next, trailing her kisses down the broad planes of toned chest which were quickly becoming exposed._

_James seemed to have managed to wrestle her free of her outer clothing as well and Lily heard a low moan escape from her mouth as his hand skimmed the top edge of her bra._

"Lily?" someone yelled frantically, "Lily, are you okay? I've stopped doing the charm. Can you hear me?"

Blinking slowly Lily replied shakily, "I'm fine. Just a bit dazed I think." Squinting at the bright light that filled the chamber, so unlike the secretive shadows of a few moments ago, Lily looked over at Alice who was clearly concerned about her.

"Did I do it right then? Were you in the Carribean?"

"You did a great job, Alice," Lily replied absent mindedly as she scanned the room, looking for whoever had just put that illusion on her.

Sirius and Remus were still laughing beside her, and she thought she saw Sirius cast her a side ways glance, but she couldn't be sure

James' face was turned towards the window but she saw a slight reddish tinge to his cheeks that didn't necessarily have to do with the weather.

"I think I'm getting a little over heated. I'm going to go to the bathroom and splash some water on my face," Lily told Alice, who still looked anxious and immediately nodded her consent to that plan.

Lily hurried out of the room so as not to be forced to look at James and went to the nearest bathroom. She carefully checked to make sure it was empty and then locked the door. Sliding down to sit on the floor with her back against the nearest wall Lily allowed herself to think about what had just happened.

What had that been? Her and James Potter, making out in a dark hallway? It was an absolutely absurd idea, impossible in fact. First of all, that kind of behavior would break a number of school rules, something in which a head girl could not indulge. Also, there was the small problem that she wasn't really attracted to the tall, handsome, muscled Quidditch captain.

Alright, so maybe she did find him a bit attractive and the feeling of his hands on her skin…

Stop it, Lily ordered herself. It was only an illusion His hands hadn't been on her skin. _But they could be if you wanted them to be_ a voice murmured suggestively in her head.

In an attempt to end her mind's insistent repetition of the scene, Lily tried to focus on the question of who had cast the spell.

It had to have been one of the Marauders. No one else would try and make her think of her and James together in that way. But which one?

Peter was obviously not an option. There was absolutely no way that he could have mastered the spell nearly as fast as Lily herself.

Remus had the best work ethic of the three but she was certain that he was too nice to create a scene like that just to torment her.

Sirius seemed like a very good candidate seeing as he was dead set on convincing her that James was worth her time, and the fact could not be ignored that he'd probably find the whole thing hilarious.

James. She felt herself blushing at the thought of his name, his disheveled hair, his tanned body. It could have been him. Of the four he certainly had the most brains and raw talent. But that he had been imaging them together in such detail was not something she felt like dwelling on, due to the surprising fact that it sent delicious warmth coursing through her body.

Sirius would be the most easy to blame the episode on, but the more she thought about it the more she wondered if it had been James.

So what if it had been James? It didn't really change anything. Except the fact that it meant that he really was interested in her, not just in tormenting her for fun. The idea that James _desired_ her was not as strange as she thought it should be and it made her feel uncomfortably excited.

Sighing, Lily turned her head back to stare up at the lofty ceiling. What was she supposed to do now? Walk back into the classroom and pretend like nothing had happened? Pretend like she hadn't just been snogging James Potter in a deserted corridor and enjoying it immensely?

Yes, that was exactly what she had to do, because what she had seen and experience had never happened except in her mind, and the mind of whoever had put her under their spell.

* * *

James stood in the corner near an open window, hoping to soon feel a gentle breeze. Peter had gone to get some extra help from Professor Flitwick, so his partner, Remus, was chatting with Sirius while he tried to perfect the wand movements.

As he observed Remus and Sirius gesturing wildly to one another he saw a flash of red out of the corner of his eye and shifted his gaze to its owner, the breathe-taking Lily Evans.

Her eyes were sparkling in triumph as she released Alice from the successful illusion she had just cast, her cheeks slightly flushed in exhilaration. James swelled with pride as he realized that, yet again, his brilliant Lily had been the first to master the spell.

He never got tired of looking at her. Not only was she beautiful but her expressions were simply so captivating that he often found himself getting lost in them.

James sighed, and raked his hand through his hair in frustration. It seemed like it would always be this way. Him standing on one side of the room pining after her while she stood on the other, completely oblivious. He wanted to close the gap, to bring them together.

His mind drifted as his hand continued to twist and turn. Without realizing it he kept whispering the spell as his aim shifted from the blank wall in front of him towards the red head who so entranced him.

The scene he pictured was one he'd imagined many times before. Usually it came after the part where Lily acknowledged that she'd been wrong about him and expressed her true, hidden feelings for him. Today his mind skipped right ahead to the dimly light corridor, where they stood locked in one another's arms, lips pressed firmly together.

He got to the part where he touched the flesh of Lily's chest and stopped. He never let his mind go farther than that. James knew that he could imagine the events that would follow but he didn't want to. Mostly it was because he was a gentleman and didn't like the idea of undressing someone as pure as Lily in his mind like some careless fling (not that he'd ever had a fling that involved any form of being undressed). Another part of him also wanted to leave something to chance in the hope that someday he'd get to experience for himself what came after.

As the day dream ended James refocused himself on the events going on in the room. Lily was just blinking her way out of a stupor and as Alice frantically tried to assure herself that Lily was okay he noticed his wand outstretched pointing towards Lily instead of a wall.

Suddenly realizing what had just happened, James turned towards the window, a blush spreading across his cheeks as he hoped against hope that Lily hadn't seen what he thought she'd just seen.

Almost immediately Lily made a hasty exit from the room, her cheeks flushed and her eyes looking pointedly away from him.

James sank into the nearest chair and put his head in his hands. Whatever hope he'd still harbored that things would change between the two of them seemed utterly ridiculous now. The damage from this would be absolutely irreparable. His plans for them this year had been so elaborate and well-thought out that it was really too cruel that they should be halted before they even began.

He sighed. He'd just have to wait and see how she treated him when she returned. Silence would mean he had no chance what so ever. A glare might, due to the eye contact, would give him the tiniest amount of space to maneuver in and could even allow for an apology. A smile, which was really a reaction too optimistic to even consider, and he'd know that somehow, for whatever reason she was okay with what had happened and that maybe things could be different.

He chuckled darkly at the last option. The only way Lily Evans was ever going to smile at him again was if it was in an illusion.

* * *

Lily stood up and swept off her skirt. She unlocked the bathroom door and walked purposefully down the hall back to the charms classroom.

As she entered the room the bell sounded and she hurried to her desk to gather up her things. Joining the group that was cueing by the door she felt herself being pushed into the person in front of her. The person turned around and Lily felt her stomach flip flop as she looked up at James Potter. He smiled shyly, his expression strangely agitated, and Lily smiled back uncertainly before escaping into the bustling hallway, trying not to think about how closely that smile resembled the one she had seen in her illusion.

* * *

Thank you all for reading!

I'd like to thank my wonderful beta D0nQuix0te for editing this story and sharing her love of commas. You are the best! This is only chapter two so stay tuned for the rest.


	3. Chapter 3: Cloak

Please note: I do not own any of these characters. They are all the creation of the inspirational J.K. Rowling.

**  
Chapter 3 – Cloak**

Lily wove through the tangled knots of students milling in the corridor, desperate to escape the warm, claustrophobic atmosphere and the look of hopeful relief that had just flashed across James' face.

While his relief clearly indicated, as Lily had suspected, that he was the one responsible for the illusion, Lily was more preoccupied with his relief. Was she really that horrible to him that he was practically afraid of her reactions? In her mind he had always been the arrogant, insensitive one, while she was friendly and open, yet this dynamic didn't seem accurate anymore. Suddenly she was the one being heartless and he was the one being pleasant.

Lily cringed as she realized that she had been treating James quite badly recently, without any actual provocation. In fact, James seemed to have taken the high road and decided to bury the hatchet, displaying a maturity she didn't know he possessed. Well, she could be just as mature and diplomatic as him. If James wanted to be friendly, then friendly they would be.

Lily was so preoccupied with her soul-searching that she didn't realize that she had entered Potions until she walked right into Professor Slughorn.

"Not to worry my dear. I fear this dratted heat is getting to all of us," Slughorn replied amiably. "It is especially bad in here with the cauldrons bubbling away all day long. I really must see Dumbledore about getting some proper ventilation put in here."

"Good idea, Professor. I should probably go to my seat and start setting up," Lily said in an effort to evade one of Slughorn's tirades about the continual lack of proper educational funding.

"Of course. Just don't forget about our Slug Club meeting tomorrow," Slughorn answered.

"I wouldn't dream of it, professor," Lily said, flashing the elderly man her brilliant smile before turning to find her seat.

Slughorn reminded her a lot of grandfather: a little vain, somewhat batty, but for the most part, a jovial old dear.

Lily took her seat on the right hand side of the room, near the supply closet and began pulling supplies from her book bag as the room quickly filled with her friends and classmates.

Amelia, Alice and Emmeline entered the room together and took their usual spots on either side of Lily.

"Do any of you have an extra silver knife? I've left mine somewhere again," Alice explained cheerfully.

"Not again! Perhaps we should get you a remembrall for Christmas," Amelia joked.

"That might not be a bad idea. I'm very smart, but in the end, not particularly bright," Alice replied mournfully.

'Which is why we love you," Lily assured. "I should have an extra one in here somewhere," Lily said as she rummaged through her bag.

"An extra what?" a deep voice asked from behind Lily.

"An extra silver knife. Alice has misplaced hers again," Lily explained as she looked up to see James standing in front of her.

"Perfect timing, Alice. I just confiscated this one from a fourth year Slytherin who was threatening to skin some poor first year if he didn't hand over all his galleons," James explained as he handed the knife to Alice.

"Is the first year alright?" Emmeline asked.

"He'd better be. I gave him the last of my chocolate frogs and I have a sneaky suspicion that one of them had a rare Queen Maeve card," James answered ruefully as he sat down in front of Lily.

"That was really nice of you," Lily said softly.

James turned around and said, "It was no big deal. I just wanted to calm the little tyke down. I'm sure you would have done the same. That's what us Heads are for, right?"

"Yes," Lily replied before busy herself with her preparations so she wouldn't have to met James' eyes.

Where in the world did that come from? James Potter, protector of the small and defender of the weak? She honestly didn't think he had it in him. James had always been rather arrogant and she'd assumed that he would only get worse now that he had the title of Head Boy to help amplify his ego. But the new position seemed to have the exact opposite effect. James' arrogance had always been his most objectionable quality, but if that had now disappeared…

Lily's train of thought was abruptly cut off as Sirius entered the room with a loud whoop.

"It's official. The dress code is being suspended until the heat wave is over. Ladies, off with your shirts," Sirius proclaimed as he took his seat beside James.

A rather rattled looking Slughorn quickly cut in as the whispering and giggling in the room started to grow louder.

"While Mr. Black is correct that the dress code has been temporarily adjusted due to the present weather conditions, it has not been cancelled. I quote here from a message I've just received from Professor McGonagall, "Shirts and either skirts or pants must be worn at all times. Cloaks, vests and ties may be removed as the wearers see fit but I encourage all of you to wear as much of your uniform as possible to uphold our school spirit and maintain our usual sense of order and decency," Slughorn gravely announced.

The class gave out a sigh of relief, and people immediately began removing their cloaks and vests.

Lily gladly dropped her cloak back into her bag and pinned her head badge to her vest instead.

Slughorn continued to drone on about the implications and restrictions of a relaxed dress code, but Lily found her attention drifting in the warm, dark space.

Staring somewhat dreamily in front of her Lily realized James had taken off his cloak, exposing the parts of his neck and back that it usually hid. His hair was much less disorderly than it used to be she realized with a pang. She hoped that all her scoffing when he intentionally messed it up hadn't influenced him to try for a more composed look. Although she had never let on, Lily had always found James' wild, bed head hairstyle rather attractive. James in bed was such a tantalizing idea.

No! Lily shouted at herself. Trying to pull her mind away from those thoughts Lily darted her eyes away from James' hair to his back. His strong shoulders and defined muscles were not hidden by his shirt and vest. Lily suddenly found herself wondering what those muscles would feel like under her exploring hands.

Get a grip on yourself, Lily's rational side exclaimed. Slowly Lily dragged her eyes away from the unsuspecting James and back to Professor Slughorn, as he finished his speech on the dress code.

Rolling up the scroll that he had been reading from, Slughorn noticeably brightened. "Now, with that out of the way, we can get on with the lesson. Today you will complete the final step of brewing Veritaserum. I must remind all of you that the ministry strictly controls the use of this potion and there will be grave consequences for anyone discovered using it inappropriately. You have two hours, the best of luck to you all."

As Slughorn finished speaking, the volume level in the classroom rose again as everyone began moving their cauldrons from the sideboard where they had been simmering for the past week back to their workbenches.

Lily carefully set her cauldron down in front of her and quickly lit it before turning quickly to her copy Advanced Potion Making to avoid looking at James.

Her hands working deftly to prepare the ingredients, Lily yet again allowed her thoughts to roam. So what if she found James attractive? She found lots of people attractive but was still able to function around them like a normal human being. For example, she knew Sirius was gorgeous but their relationship was friendly and completely platonic. It didn't have to be any different with James.

Her mind settled and her resolve to not let any attraction she might feel get in the way, Lily focused herself completely on the complicated steps required to finish the Veritaserum.

After adding the final drop of wormwood essence, Lily set her hour glass to ensure that the potion simmered for exactly seven minutes before she doused the cauldron fire, added a drop of dragon's blood and stirred seven times, counter clockwise, to complete the potion.

Lily walked over to the supply closet to return the worm wood essence just as a glum looking Remus and an anxious looking Sirius came out and went back to their seats. As she pushed past James, who just appeared in the closet doorway, to enter the small shelved room he shouted at the retreating backs of his friends.

"Cheer up mate, you know Damocles has nearly perfected the wolfs-"

Lily cut him off abruptly by covering his mouth with her hand and dragging him backwards into the closet, where she gently closed the door and turned to glare at the confused young man opposite her.

"What was that for? If you wanted to get me alone in a closet all you had to do was ask," James said indignantly.

"Do you really think that Remus wants everyone to find out that his 'furry little problem' has more to do with claws than fuzzy bunny rabbits by you shouting the news to the high heavens?" Lily answered scathingly, her emerald eyes flashing dangerously.

James gaped and after several minutes of silence finally sputtered out, "you know?"

"If you mean do I know Remus is a werewolf, then yes, I know," Lily replied tersely.

"He told you?" James said resentfully, "Because he didn't even tell me or Sirius. We had to figure it out on our own."

"No, I figured out," Lily said evenly, as her temper dissipated.

"How?" James asked shortly.

Seeing that he wasn't going to leave her alone until she gave him a full explanation, Lily sighed.

"It was in fifth year when we were first prefects together. I noticed that he was often unable to go on patrols because he was sick. When I asked him about it he said that it was some strange, reoccurring illness that Madame Pomfrey couldn't cure. I know he had to be lying since if Madame Pomfrey couldn't help one of her students she would have immediately shipped them off to St. Mungo's. Since Remus clearly wasn't going to tell me and I was really curious I started doing some research and eventually realized that his symptoms were those of someone suffering lycanthropy. I confronted him about it and when he realized that it wouldn't change anything between us he confirmed my suspicions."

"In your research did you find any way to treat him? Any at all?" James asked desperately, a wild hope coming into his eyes.

"No. I'd really hoped I'd find something in some long buried text, but there was nothing, although chocolate is supposed to make the recovery easier," Lily explained sadly as she watched James' eyes dim and his shoulders slump.

"Are you the one who brings him the large box of chocolate every full moon? Remus always feigns ignorance about who sends them," James asked suddenly.

"Yes, that's me. It's the only way I can really help since I'm not an animagus."

"You know about that too?" James exclaimed, "And you never said anything. Why not? You're my -"

"I'm not your anything. I have never been so much as your friend. I owe you nothing, you arrogant, self-righteous git," Lily spat before she had a chance to monitor her response and abide by her earlier vow of being friendlier.

James looked like he'd been slapped across the face. The hurt in his expression instantly drove Lily to repentance. Moving closer to him she placed her hand on his shoulder, and began speaking softly.

"James, I'm sorry for what I said and I'm sorry we haven't been on friendlier terms over the years. We just seem to bring out the worst in each other."

His face softening, James replied, "But we don't have to. You and I could be great together." Seeing a wary look cross Lily's face, James quickly continued, "As friends, of course. I need someone like you to keep me down to earth and safe from my hooligan friends and you need someone like me to lighten things up and add some pizzazz to your life."

Lily giggled, "Pizzazz? I think I'll have to accept your offer just because you had the courage to say that."

"Friends, Ms. Evans?" James queried, holding out his hand.

"Certainly, Mr. Potter." Lily replied as she grasped his outstretched hand firmly in her own.

* * *

Thank you all for reading!  
I'd like to thank my wonderful beta D0nQuix0te for editing this story and sharing with me her love of commas. You are the best!


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